


You're so one in a million

by zarrents



Category: One Direction (Band), Zayn Malik (Musician)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Fluff, M/M, essentially thats all it is
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-22
Updated: 2015-12-22
Packaged: 2018-05-08 12:01:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,319
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5496320
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/zarrents/pseuds/zarrents
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <em>I wanna pretend we're at the North Pole<br/>Turning the heat into an ice cold holiday<br/>Made just for me and my baby</em>
</p>
            </blockquote>





	You're so one in a million

**Author's Note:**

> this is kind of based off of all the songs from Ariana Grande's "Christmas & Chill" EP
> 
> the title's from "True Love" off of the EP

Despite the bright light coming through the open blinds in the bedroom, Zayn is freezing underneath both of his covers. He feels blasts of cool air coming through the air vent while the sun shines warmth onto his face. The combination is too much, and he'd consider falling back asleep if it wasn't for Harry's ridiculously loud rustling in the living room. Though his better judgement tells him not to, he gets up and puts a sweatshirt on before venturing out of the bedroom into the even colder area. He sees Harry decorating a synthetic green Christmas tree that he must've bought this morning since it wasn't there last night. On the floor, there's shattered pieces of green, red, and gold glass, what Zayn assumes are broken ornaments and the source of the noises he'd heard a few minutes ago.

"Harry why the hell does it feel like the arctic in here?" Zayn doesn't even bother asking about the tree or ornaments, all he wants is for the air conditioning to be turned off.

Harry freezes in the middle of putting a shiny red ball on the miniature tree, now turning to look at Zayn with a too-big smile on his face. 

"I'm making it more wintery," he says it as if that explains why their apartment is 20 degrees below the normal temperature. Zayn's not sure how to respond because he doesn't think he entirely gets it still, so Harry keeps talking. "You're usually in London for Christmas, and since today's the first day of winter and it doesn't snow, or get to anything below 50, in L.A., I thought I'd make it feel a bit more like home for you." 

Zayn still doesn't know what to say to that. He really shouldn't be surprised at Harry's sickeningly sweet gesture because that's exactly the type of person he is, but he's still overwhelmed that Harry took the time to make Zayn's first winter in California the best he could. Harry's already gone back to perfectly placing the ornament on the lopsided tree branch, but Zayn makes his way over to hug him from behind and doesn't let go until Harry insists that he needs to go get the lights from the closet. 

When he comes back Zayn's in their small kitchenette making something on the stove, which is odd considering he either waits for Harry to cook or he makes something that takes little to no effort. He doesn't think much of it, probably just Zayn boiling water for tea or something like that. He carries on with what he was doing, stringing the red and green lights around the circumference of the tree and making sure they're perfectly placed before plugging it into the wall socket. 

"Babe do you think this looks festive enough?" Harry takes a step back, looking at the tree as though it's a finished painting and he's the artist. He looks over at Zayn who's stirring something in a saucepan, he still doesn't know what it is but he's too preoccupied with decorating right now. 

"Missing a star on top yeah?" Zayn suggests, looking across the room at Harry's poor but noble attempt at a traditional Christmas setting. 

Harry's eyes widen almost comedically, as if he couldn't believe he'd forgotten the most important thing, the epitome of a Christmas tree. He all but sprints back to the coat closet, easily reaching the top shelf he has reserved for all holiday decorations, and grabs the gold, wire star. He returns just as quick as he left, racing to get the star up as if he didn't have all day to do so. While he tries to make the glittery decoration look as symmetrical as possible, Zayn's moved from his spot in front of the stove, looking for mugs in the cupboard instead. Once he's found two from the same set, he pours the milk he's been heating into both of them until they're full but not to the brim. Once he's mixed in the chocolate powder, he carefully brings both cups into the middle of the room where Harry's been unnecessarily fixing every faux branch on the tree to make it look perfect.

"What's this?" Harry's shocked when he sees the hot chocolate being brought to him. Zayn's never been one for hot drinks, let alone making fresh ones on the stovetop. Either way, he takes the mug with a "thank you" and blows cool air over it before taking a tentative sip. 

"Figured you shouldn't be the only one contributing to the holiday spirit around here" he shrugs, trying to keep his blush hidden by raising the cup to his lips, only realizing his mistake after he'd scalded his tongue. The burning sensation is dulled though, since Harry's pressing a kiss into his cheek before carefully drinking from his own mug.

They sit in a comfortable silence on the couch as they drink their hot chocolate and drape a blanket across their legs as though it's not almost 80 degrees outside. Zayn can't explain what he's feeling now: contentment in this moment, gratefulness for having someone like Harry in his life, or anxiety as he thinks about how their relationship could be years from now. He's deep in thought until he hears Harry calling his name, his voice expectant like he'd been talking to him. He looks over to see Harry's eyes are already fixed on him. Zayn doesn't say anything, just looks at him with confused eyes and waits for him to repeat the question.

"I said go get dressed, I've got plans for us" Harry says again, collecting both mugs and taking them to the dishwasher. Only then does Zayn notice Harry's already got jeans and a long sleeve shirt on, ready to go out. 

He gets up and makes his way back to their shared bedroom, removing his sweatshirt and flannel pants on his way to the bathroom to shower. He stays under the warm water for a while, enjoying the relief from their freezing apartment, until Harry starts pounding on the door insisting that he hurry up because "it's already 2 o clock!" He does his best to get dressed quickly, throwing on a pair of black jeans and a t-shirt that he's not even sure is his, before meeting Harry in the living room for the second time today. 

"Ready, then?" Harry asks, giving Zayn a slow once-over before swinging open the front door and letting the L.A. heat into the freezing room. He doesn't expect an answer,doesn't wait for one either since he's already halfway outside, holding the door open behind him so that Zayn can come out as well. 

Once they're both on the porch, Harry closes and locks the door and begins down the street, not bothering to tell Zayn where he intended taking them. They walk for about half an hour, most of that time consisting of Zayn complaining about the heat and asking "how much further?" Of course, Harry's too excited about whatever he has planned to acknowledge his boyfriend's grumbling. Zayn's been on his phone to distract from the fact that he's sweating through his dark colored t-shirt, so he barely registers that Harry's stopped walking until he bumps into his shoulder. He looks up from Twitter to see where he's been forced to go.

"An ice skating rink" he states unenthusiastically. He doesn't know why Harry thought that this would be a good place for them to go seeing as neither of them have a strong track record in keeping their balance. 

Harry doesn't acknowledge that Zayn's said anything, though, already walking towards the entrance, leaving Zayn no choice but to follow him in. It's freezing inside, the temperature resemblant of how their apartment felt this morning. They both immediately start shivering, neither of them dressed for the cold, but Zayn doesn't object, he knows how excited Harry is to be here. He stands to the side as Harry rents the skates for them, handing one of the blue pairs to Zayn while he sits and straps on his own. 

The two hours they spent in the skating rink consisted of Zayn holding on to the wall until Harry coaxed him out into the middle of the ice where they both struggled to stay upright. To no one's surprise, Harry managed to lose his balance and fall as they made their way to the edge of the rink, leaving the back of his jeans soaked and littered with ice chips. As they sit on one of the hard benches and remove their skates, Zayn leans over and places a kiss on Harry's temple, a way of saying thank you for the day out. They return the skates and take their time walking back, hand in hand, enjoying the early sunset and slightly cooler weather. 

Zayn lays out on the couch as soon as they walk back into their frigid apartment, knowing Harry left the air conditioner blasting while they were gone. While he wraps himself up in the blanket they'd used earlier, Harry takes his time toeing his boots off by the door and carefully placing his keys in the bowl they have on the counter. He sits on the couch as well, letting his legs serve as a foot rest for Zayn's still shoe-clad feet. Harry undoes the laces for him, removing the converse and nearly laughing at the sight of the batman socks he sees underneath them. After a few minutes of shifting around, they both end up with their legs on the couch, Zayn's feet near Harry's shoulder and vice versa. Zayn flips through the channels unhurriedly, not looking for anything in particular, but not in the mood for anything he sees on TV. Once he decides to put on Elf, he drops the remote onto their plush rug and lets his arm hang off the edge of the couch while he stares straight ahead at the movie that's already halfway through. Harry gets his attention after a few minutes, nudging his foot against Zayn's upper arm. 

"You have fun today?" he asks once Zayn's attention is taken off of the film they've both seen countless times but never get tired of. 

"Course I did. I was with you, wasn't I?" and he knows it's too cheesy, but he genuinely means it; any day he spends with Harry is a good one "Thanks for giving me a proper first day of winter in California" he adds, tucking his cold toes under Harry's arm. 

"Thanks for not making fun of my mini tree" he teases, taking another look at the small, plastic pine tree that has way too many decorations for it's size. Zayn looks at it too, smiling at the star that Harry so desperately tried to place perfectly on the tree, but has now fallen a bit to the left.

It's definitely nothing like the winters in London with his family: snow falling outside, heater turned up to the highest setting, the house smelling like his mum's desserts. But it's perfect for them; a small apartment with a fake tree and neighbors upstairs who never know when it's considered "too late" to play their music at full volume. Zayn thinks Christmas with Harry in L.A. is something he could get used to. They'd start their own traditions, reusing the same tree until the wire branches are worn and faded, making hot chocolate on the stove top in the morning with the air blasting through the vents. 

"I love you" Zayn says it out of nowhere, suddenly getting the urge to as he sits back and watches Harry watch the movie, smiling when Harry does and frowning up a bit when the smile fades. He lets a soft smile grace his lips as Harry looks back at him with tired eyes, even though it's only 9 p.m. They stare at each other a while, something they do often, as if they're just seeing each other for the first time. 

"Love you too" he returns after a minute passes, after he realizes he hadn't said it back because he was too caught up in Zayn: the brightness in his eyes along with the upwards turn of the sides of his mouth. 

With only about a quarter of the movie left, they shift on their small couch again, Zayn coming up to lay halfway on top of Harry, a position that would definitely be more comfortable if they had more space but neither of them complain. Zayn falls asleep to Harry's soft humming along to one of the songs that plays in the background of the movie near the end. Harry watches him for a bit, mesmerized by how their breathing is almost perfectly in time with one another. He falls asleep as one of the "Santa Claus" movies begins to play on the channel he's watching, pulling the blanket further up their bodies until it reaches just under their chins. 

Harry wakes up with a sharp pain down the side of his neck and a tingling sensation in his arm. He doesn't know what time it is but it must be about five or six, the sun's rays barely shining in through the uncovered windows. As he re-situates himself to get comfortable, or as comfortable as he can in the cramped space, Zayn starts to wake up beside him. 

"Go back to sleep babe, it's early" he insists, carding a hand through Zayn's soft hair, soothing him into falling asleep once again. Harry follows soon after, closing his eyes and resting his head against the arm of the couch, enjoying the heat of the sun on his face mixed with the harsh coldness of their living room. He knows he'll wake up even more uncomfortable than he is now but with Zayn's body pressed so close to his, he can't bring himself to care.


End file.
